Product descriptionThis is the first comprehensive and systematic analytical study of the major philosophical concepts of classical yoga. The book consists of a series of detailed discussions of the key concepts used by Patanjali in his Yoga-Sutra to describe and explain the enigma of human existence and to point a way beyond the perpetual motion of the wheel of becoming. Feuerstein's study differs from previous ones in that it seeks to free Patanjali's aphoristic statements from the accretions of later interpretations; instead, the author places the Sutra in its original context and sees it as the source of the whole edifice of classical yoga and not just as a summary of previous developments. This book will be of interest to comparative religionists, Indologists, and practitioners of yoga who wish to deepen their understanding of its philosophical basis.Review"This is certainly one of the most profound and original contributions to the understanding of classical yoga.", Mircea Eliade "An all too rare combination of sound scholarship, common sense and personal experience. Feuerstein's views, born of a long acquaintance with the original texts and tested against a large critical reading, are both fresh and mature, and he at last emerges from the role of skillful adaptor to be given his rightful place among the great masters of philosophy.", Dr. Daniel Mariau "Provides us with a highly original overall picture of classical yoga...The other great merit of this work is that it never loses sight of the psycho-integrative and experiential matrix of a great many key concepts of classical yoga.", Prof. Corrado PensaFrom the Back CoverYOGA “This is certainly one of the most profound and original contributions to the understanding of classical yoga.” --Mircea Eliade “In Georg Feuerstein we have a scholar-practitioner of the first magnitude, an extremely important and valuable voice for the perennial philosophy, and arguably the foremost authority on yoga today.” --Ken Wilber, author of A Brief History of Everything One of the first comprehensive studies of the philosophical concepts of classical yoga, The Philosophy of Classical Yoga details the key concepts used by Patañjali in his Yoga-Sutra to describe the enigma of human existence and to indicate a way to escape the perpetual motion of the wheel of becoming. Feuerstein’s study differs from previous ones in that it seeks to free Patañjali’s aphoristic statements from the accretions of later interpretations; instead, the author places the Sutra in its original context and sees it as the source of the whole edifice of classical yoga and not just as a summary of previous developments. A lucid exposition of an essential yoga doctrine, this book will appeal to comparative religionists, Indologists, and practitioners of yoga who wish to deepen their understanding of its philosophical basis. GEORG FEUERSTEIN, Ph.D., has written a number of books on yoga and related topics, including Yoga: The Technology of Ecstasy, Wholeness or Transcendence?, The Yoga-Sutra of Patañjali: A New Translation and Commentary, and the award-winning Encyclopedic Dictionary of Yoga. An acknowledged yoga scholar of international stature, he is a founding member of the Indian Academy of Yoga, Benares Hindu University, a member of the advisory council of the Center for Studies in Science and Spirituality in San Francisco, and a contributing editor of Yoga Journal.About the AuthorGeorg Feuerstein was an internationally recognized yoga scholar who began studying yoga at the age of fourteen. He is the author of The Essence of Yoga, Lucid Waking, The Philosophy of Classical Yoga, Sacred Sexuality, and The Yoga-Sutra of Patañjali.